Why Russian Christians draw hope from a new Trump term

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During the American election campaign, Donald J. Trump promised to settle the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. “Within twenty-four hours”, he added.

Even though many understand that peace might not come within a day, peace in Eastern Europe is high on the list of priorities of the 47th US President. Can Trump be the peacemaker Evangelicals in Russia have been praying for?

Military hospital

“I am glad that Trump is elected president again,” says the 37-year-old Mikhail, who works as a window cleaner in Russia’s capital. At first glance, the war seems far away, but the conflict directly affects his family.   

    When Ukraine invaded Russia’s Kursk region, for days, Mikhail was unsure of his relative’s whereabouts. His nephew was serving his term as a conscript in the army. Later, Mikhail found out he was in a Moscow military hospital. One of his limbs was severely damaged.

Whenever the church people seem to have forgotten about the war, something new happens. Like this spring, when some Evangelists spoke to a young man called Vladimir. Vova, he called himself. Vladimir had money problems and decided to enlist, even though the Christians of Mikhail’s church told him not to go. “You’ll lose a limb”, one brother warned him.

Half a year later, in autumn 2024, Mikhail got a message on Telegram with a photo of Vladimir without one of his legs. In hindsight, the brother’s words were prophetic.

“With Trump, there is at least the hope of a solution to this conflict”, Mikhail states, unsure how exactly the American president will do this. Protestant Christians all over Russia might have a different opinion on which side is the right side of the conflict in Ukraine. One thing, however, is for sure: everyone prays for peace. And hope is rising that maybe President Trump can broker a deal.

Empty promises

Hopes regarding American politics are generally not high in Russia. Still, one can certainly feel a breath of optimism in many churches. The prevailing idea in Russia is that the West has ignored the country’s concerns for years.

In the eyes of Evangelicals, Russian-speaking minorities in Ukraine have been persecuted, the Russia-backed Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) has been banned, and many Protestant churches have banned Russian hymnbooks and Russian Bibles. It is a painful reality: where many Christians in Russia see Ukrainians as brothers, the opposite is often less true. It is not clear if Trump will take Russia’s concerns seriously.

“Presidents come and go, but the politicians stay the same,” Russia’s President Vladimir Putin stated back in 2017. The president can try to change things, but then “men in suits” come and bring the same policies that the bureaucrats in Washington have pushed for decades. Yes, many Russian believers are sceptics: Can Trump really change this “deep state,” or is the promise of a peace deal another empty promise? And will Russia’s concerns be held in view?   

    On the one hand, the American war industry is deeply involved in the war. However, it could force Ukraine to sit with Russia at the table. On the other hand, fears are that Trump will take even more decisive actions against Russia than he did before. One way Trump can bring Russia to its knees is by drilling and fracking the price of oil to a historic low. The Russian economy runs on oil, and a low oil price can hurt the economy.

Woke agenda

Like always, it is far from clear what the future may bring. “Even if the war continues, it is already positive that Trump will fight back the LGBT agenda,” another brother in church says. His name is Dmitry, and he works as a welder. We, as Christians, must see Trump as an “ally” against those ideas, he says. In Russia’s rather conservative society, the conservative ideas of the Republican Party do ring well, he adds.

Another brother, Konstantin, says that since he became a believer, his viewpoints have drastically changed. “In the past, I always wanted to leave for America; I thought there was justice in the West,” he says. Now, I understand that there are flaws in every country, and sin is everywhere.”

Instead of following the ‘American dream’, Konstantin now says he feels obliged to pray for Russia’s president and try to bring change in his own life, “even though I might not agree with what he says”.   

    One should remember that the current Biden administration is still in place. Trump’s second inauguration will not happen until January 20th, and a lot can change before that moment.

One of the things that has been happening the past few days is Washington’s green light for Kyiv to attack Russian soil. President Putin has even threatened with nuclear strikes if that might happen. For the Evangelicals in Russia, this will be reason enough to continue in prayer.